Chapter 131
Chapter 131
Translation: godsn
The cavalry dragged in prisoners bound with ropes. At the head of the group was Iason.
"G-Grand Duke Castulo! Why is that bastard still here?"
The Valdinans who recognized Iason's face were utterly shocked.
Hadn't he been caught attempting to harm the princess and subsequently expelled from the royal castle by the Queen Dowager's order not long ago?
"We found him hiding in a village behind the rebel army's encampment. They were all armed."
"It's a misunderstanding! I merely sought to lend a hand in suppressing the rebels!"
At Marquess Gilifos's words, Iason hastily defended himself.
Though he had fled with Ost, he couldn't escape Gilifos's relentless pursuit and was ultimately captured like a wolf.
During his miserable journey, dragged along like a pack mule, he heard rumors of the King of Valdina's return.
And now, as Iason was brought into the castle, his eyes fell upon the bloodied Regent and the mountain of corpses belonging to the private soldiers.
'We've failed. Utterly and miserably failed!'
Who could have predicted the King would return this early? And to evade all the Regent's numerous traps at that!
Iason bit the inside of his cheek, struggling to regain his composure.
But he wasn't the only one frantically racking his brain. The Regent's eyes gleamed sharply.
"Y-Your Majesty, it was the Grand Duke! He framed me for his crimes. Look, bringing soldiers into Valdina—what else could he have been planning...?"
The Regent moved first, shifting all blame onto Iason.
Iason was aghast.
The sheer audacity of the Regent—the mastermind behind this chaos—now pinning the crimes on him made Iason want to strangle the man on the spot.
"Your Majesty of Valdina, no. This is nothing but the shameless slander of a man desperate to escape punishment."
Suppressing his rising fury, Iason hurriedly protested.
His smooth, gentle tone made him appear the victim of false accusations.
"You may not know this, but despite being part of the Kazen diplomatic mission, I worked tirelessly to ensure Valdina received twice the aid. I even guaranteed a fair duel to assist the princess. How could I possibly seek to harm Valdina?"
But Siseo didn't allow Iason to twist the facts and win Pelleus's favor.
"Grand Duke Castulo, was it also slander when you secretly brought wolves into the royal hunt to attack Her Highness Medeia, causing her to fall off a cliff?"
Siseo's cheek, struck by the Regent's knight, was swollen, and his monocle was cracked.
Yet his sharp, cold reasoning remained unchanged—befitting the Iron-Blooded Chancellor.
"For that crime, the Queen Dowager expelled you from Valdina. Yet instead of returning to Kazen, you deceived us and brought in troops. Were you holding a grudge against the Valdina royal family and aiding the rebels?"
"That's right! That bastard planned to kidnap Medeia and stage a rescue from the rebels to regain entry into the royal castle!"
Seizing the moment, the Regent chimed in.
He had completely forgotten that Siseo was the political rival he had wanted dead.
Right now, he was hell-bent on pinning everything on Iason.
'I have to survive. I must avoid execution at all costs!'
Even if it meant turning his former ally into an enemy.
Their shared camaraderie had been brief, and the instinct for immediate survival outweighed everything else.
Where was the man who had just moments ago threatened his own mother and niece while clamoring for the throne?
People frowned in disgust.
If one aspired to the highest seat of power, they ought to display the dignity befitting it.
The Regent's shameless desperation to escape execution came across as downright pathetic.
No one here was a fool.
It was impossible not to notice that some agreement had existed between the Regent and Kazen's Grand Duke.
'Even if he wanted the throne, colluding with Kazen's Grand Duke? Was he planning to reduce our Valdina to a vassal state of the Empire?'
Meanwhile, Iason lamented.
He wanted to gouge out his own eyes for having joined hands with such a foolish, cunning rat in his bid for power.
"Grand Duke Castulo, just admit it. You came to Valdina aiming to become the princess's consort. You thought Medeia was young and weak—that you could seize control of Valdina and enter the imperial succession battle!"
The Regent showed no hesitation.
If it meant deflecting blame, he wouldn't think twice about exposing their secret dealings.
"Regent!"
Iason's heart plummeted.
Though it was true he had intended to use the princess and target Valdina's backing, he realized with sudden clarity that he desperately didn't want Medeia to discover these truths.
"N-no... That's not it—"
Iason whirled toward Medeia in panic.
"Your Highness! Surely you don't believe such slander? I merely... truly... felt genuine affection for you. I swear upon the gods I sought no advantage."
He reached out, taking hesitant steps toward her. Both his voice and gaze when addressing Medeia were fraught with desperation.
"......"
But Medeia retreated a step back, her face expressionless.
She couldn't bear even his shadow touching hers upon the floor.
The flicker of contempt that passed through her jade-green eyes lasted but an instant.
Yet blood siblings perceive what others miss.
Pelleus immediately recognized his sister's aversion to the Grand Duke.
'Dea, your incompetent brother has made you suffer too many hardships.'
First their uncle, now Kazen's imperial family.
His chest ached imagining his sister navigating treacherous schemes alone amidst this pack of jackals circling Valdina.
Already, his blue eyes had turned frighteningly cold at the Grand Duke's exposed plot against Medeia.
Pelleus swept Iason with an icy gaze from head to toe.
Now that he was present, this man would never set foot on this land again.
He would permit no filthy mongrel's approach toward his only sister.
Iason too noticed the King's piercing stare. The hairs on his nape rose as if targeted by a hunter.
Even among the Agema, hostility toward Iason bloomed viciously.
'That oily Kazen Grand Duke dared covet Her Highness our Princess! Moreover—'
After Medeia's stratagem secured the plains victory, she had long since become their object of reverence, whether they realized it or not.
Seeing no way out, Iason felt near madness.
"Your Majesty, there's truly been a misunderstanding."
"Then can Your Grace prove which part of this is untrue?"
Medeia's calm question pierced Iason's solar plexus.
With the fabricated evidence she'd prepared and his involvement in the rebellion exposed on-site, even Iason knew mere verbal excuses were useless.
"Though tangled in misunderstandings and mistakes, I won't evade responsibility for Valdina's damages. I'll provide compensation—ample enough that Valdina won't feel slighted. To ensure no strain on our nations' relations—"
"Unnecessary."
Pelleus's frigid voice rang out.
Iason's eyes widened. Was the King believing him? A thread of hope glimmered in his flushed face.
"Your Majesty, you cannot let this matter pass."
Just as Siseo reluctantly intervened, unable to comprehend his judgment, Pelleus continued:
"We'll settle the blood debt here and now."
What did that mean?
Before Iason could wonder—
Pelleus drew his sword. With only a soft shiiiing sound cutting the air—
"G-guh...!"
The knight standing beside Iason collapsed soundlessly. His helmet bore an engraved laurel design.
The onlookers couldn't conceal their shock.
In the instant crushing weight of that surging, razor-sharp killing intent—a life had ended.
"Grand Duke, we spared you unharmed after your capture for aiding rebels. Surely you wouldn't begrudge losing a mere limb."
Snick. Pelleus sheathed his blade.
His economical movements held an almost sacred grace.
"But Kazen's interference in Valdina's affairs and threatening my sister—that debt I'll formally collect from your Empire later."
As if this weren't the end, his method of gradually cornering opponents mirrored his sibling's.
Iason stood dumbfounded.
The dead man was his last remaining hermit. Alarm bells rang in his mind.
'Did he kill him knowing Ost's identity? Was the King targeting me all along?'
Whether the cold fury in those blue eyes was for threatening his sister or targeting Grand Duke Castulo himself remained unclear.
But one thing was certain.
The King before him—who'd slain a hermit in the blink of an eye—was issuing a silent warning:
Had it not been him, it would have been you.
A chill ran down Iason's spine.